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Special features
The Mai-Kai cocktail guide
Okole Maluna Society
The Atomic Grog reviews and rates more than 50 of The Mai-Kai's amazing tropical drinks from the current menu plus reveals many lost classics. Add your comments and ratings, plus check out more than 80 authentic, ancestor and tribute recipes.
• The Mai-Kai unveils new menu
Tiki artists salute The Mai-Kai with one-of-a-kind mugs
Two of the most acclaimed artists in the Tiki scene have created hand-crafted mugs that pay tribute to The Mai-Kai in Fort Lauderdale and its iconic imagery.
News
Walt Disney World
Trader Sam's Grog Grotto coming to Disney's Polynesian Village
At the colorful crossroads where Disneyphiles and Tikiphiles meet, there's a new date to be honored and celebrated annually with a rum-fueled fervor. May 2 will forever be known as the day that Trader Sam packed up his collection of curios and headed to Disney World.
• Past coverage of Disney's Polynesian Resort refurbishment
Behind the bar
Review: Ice sphere molds
Home mixologists can get crafty with ice molds, modern cocktails
We put two new products to the test, proving that you don't need to be an ice sculptor to join the craft cocktail bandwagon. Plus: A bonus recipe for a new orginal concoction.
Take 5 with Martin Cate
Q&A with rum cocktail maestro
The owner of Smuggler's Cove in San Francisco talks about his favorite drinks, a possible future project and why every city should have a great Tiki bar. Plus, bonus recipes for two of his most acclaimed cocktails.
99 bottles of rum on the wall
Rating the top cane spirits
The Atomic Grog recently reached a landmark by acquiring a 99th bottle of rum. The occasion provided even more reason to literally take stock of this booty.
• Check out our Top 50 ratings
Restaurants, nightlife
Dada in Delray Beach embraces rum with new cocktail menu
This eclectic eatery offers a unique experience in South Florida, elevated just a notch higher by the new rums and cocktails.
Review: A Taste Of ... Dada
Innovative watering holes fuel rise of craft cocktails
The craft cocktail scene in Palm Beach County has come a long way in a very short time. From Sweetwater Bar & Grill to Kapow! Noodle Bar to Hullabaloo, there are many choices for wildly creative adult beverages that didn't exist just five years ago.
Hullabaloo jazzes up Clematis Street with inventive cocktails
A preview party for the new gastropub and craft cocktail bar in downtown West Palm Beach was the scene of controlled chaos as bartenders, chefs, and staff kept the high-quality food and drinks flowing nonstop.
• Take 5 interview: Rodney Mayo
REVIEW: Sweetwater Bar & Grill
A shining beacon of light in a food and drink wasteland
This dark and mysterious speakeasy has with little fanfare become the area's preeminent hidden gem for inventive adult beverages, plus gastropub-style food that's just as decadent and delicious.
• Sweetwater introduces new cocktails, huge spirits menu
Cocktails
Need a punch recipe for 200? The Rum Rat Pack has it covered
The experts at The Hukilau's 'Rumposium' showed us how to fill a bowl with 630 ounces of deliciousness (including 240 ounces of rum) with style and flair.
Miami mixologist shows how to jazz up your tired old cocktails
Freddy Diaz of AlambiQ Mixology demonstrated a few tricks (and recipes) with exotic liqueurs Cherry Heering and Xante pear liqueur at a cocktail seminar at the 2012 Epcot International Food and Wine Festival.
Culture & travel
Stretching the limits
of the imagination
The Dali Museum in St. Petersburg is a surreal experience in its own right.
• Mermaids alive, well at Weeki Wachee
Archives
Past stories of note
• Wayne Coombs of Mai Tiki dies at 62
• Take 5: Artist Mike "Pooch" Pucciarelli
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Special event recap
The Hukilau, Fort Lauderdale
Annual Tiki festival says 'Aloha' but not goodbye
Browse dozens of photos from The Atomic Grog's adventures at the East Coast's premiere event celebrating Polynesian Pop and mid-century culture, held June 11-15 at The Mai-Kai and The Bahia Mar.
A deep dive into the history of porthole cocktail lounges and their mysterious mermaids
If you've ever wondered about the origins of the porthole lounge, or where you can still find one inhabited by live mermaids, then "Cocktails & Fishtails" was a must-see among The Hukilau's symposiums.
• Full coverage of The Hukilau 2014
Missing The Hukilau and The Mai-Kai? Limited edition Tiki mugs are the next best thing
For many, the one piece of merchandise most closely associated with Tiki culture is, of course, the Tiki mug. Every year, The Hukilau has produced one of the most distinctive (and valuable) mugs on the market, designed by noted artists and produced in limited editions by the top mug manufacturers.
Photos and memories from 2013
From the Disasternauts to Ixtahuele, from the Wild West Indies to lost cocktails at The Mai-Kai, check out The Atomic Grog's Top 10 memories from The Hukilau.
• Full coverage of The Hukilau 2013
Tiki culture
Plastic Paradise: A Swingin' Trip Through America's Polynesian Obsession
PBS stations say aloha to long-awaited documentary
Filmed at The Mai-Kai and The Hukilau and produced by Miami's award-winning commercial and documentary filmmakers Common Machine, Plastic Paradise has been released to PBS affiliates nationwide.
• Mini Mystery Bowl: Scaled-down version of a classic
• 6 ways to celebrate Tiki all year long
Music
Hulaween 2013 at The Mai-Kai
Skinny Jimmy & the Stingrays raise hell at The Mai-Kai
Browse photos from the fifth annual Halloween party in The Molokai lounge at The Mai-Kai in Fort Lauderdale, featuring Skinny Jimmy & the Stingrays, a costume contest and more.
Concert photos
Laramie Dean and Jimmy Dale
The summer tour featuring surf guitarist Laramie Dean and drummer Jimmy Dale made three stops in South Florida in July, including shows at Churchill's in Miami and The Mai-Kai's Molokai bar (above). See photos from both concerts.
• Interview with Laramie Dean
Dick Dale exclusive interview & photos
Cancer survivor and rock legend: 'I had both feet in the grave'
Rock 'n' roll icon Dick Dale is in the midst of a career resurgence at age 76, despite battling cancer and other serious health issues that would have derailed musicians half his age. Check out our exclusive interview and photos from his 2013 concert in Miami.
• See the interview | Photos
Album review
Los Straitjackets soar again with the release of 'Jet Set'
Those masked marvels of instrumental rock have launched a high-flying comeback after being dealt a paralyzing blow that would have pinned lesser bands. Jet Set is perhaps the band's best release ever.
Florida at forefront of surf rock's contemporary renaissance
Since it's birth in the early 1960s, surf music seems to arrive in waves every 15 years. And just as Florida surfers have played second fiddle to California, so have the Sunshine State's surf bands. But it's surely not due to lack of talent or effort.
Eclectic podcasts broadcast the soundtrack to the Tiki revival
Sorting through 50 years of exotic and underground music can be daunting. Luckily, we have very capable podcasters to do the work for us.
Walt Disney World
30 great ways to celebrate
30 years of Epcot magic
Here are The Atomic Grog's favorite things to do at this eclectic combination of futuristic playground and food and beverage smorgasbord.
Modern Retro Disney World
Enchanted Tiki Room still charms, inspires
Keeping Walt Disney's vision alive since 1971, this landmark theme park attraction received a welcome refurbishment in 2011 that heralded the return of the vintage show that pays tribute to the original Enchanted Tiki Room at Disneyland.
About The Atomic Grog
• What is The Atomic Grog?
• Contact us
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Spirits, cocktails
National Tequila Day
Spice up your tequila cocktails with fiery gourmet syrups
A great margarita never goes out of style and has been embraced and elevated by the craft cocktail movement, with great results. One tasty sub-genre is the spicy cocktail, typically infused with hot peppers and myriad spices.
Reviews and recipes:
Habanero Lime Margarita | Ghost Host
Summer of rum
South Florida hotspots give cool spirit a chance to shine
Several of the area's most respected cocktail bars are embracing rum this summer, giving the sometimes maligned spirit its moment in the sun and guests a jolt of bold and sweet flavors to match the season's sizzling intensity.
Tales of the Cocktail
Signature drink packs a wallop, but can it tame a Hurricane inspired by The Mai-Kai?
The official cocktail of 12th annual festival that draws tens of thousands of people to New Orleans is not some highbrow cult classic or trendy new concoction. It's the mighty yet maligned Hurricane.
Reviews and recipes: Hurricane Caesar vs. The Mai-Kai Hurricane
Music
South Florida scene: Gold Dust Lounge
Band sets sail on adventurous journey with Lost Sunset
A week after performing a sold-out show at The Mai-Kai during The Hukilau, the eclectic Miami band celebrated the release of the Kickstarter-funded Lost Sunset album.
Special event
The Hukilau, June 11-15
Jeff Berry proves he’s never too busy to be a 'Beachbum'
The man who built a career on his image as a carefree bum is now one of the busiest people in the cocktail world. Jeff "Beachbum" Berry is simultaneously promoting his sixth book, a new cocktail app, and an ingenious bar tool … all while planning the opening of his first bar this fall in New Orleans.
• Potions of the Caribbean: Cruise back to the birthplace of Tiki drinks
Navy Grog ice cone: Lost art is revived by cocktail enthusiasts
Author and cocktail historian Jeff "Beachbum" Berry solidified his standing as the "Indiana Jones" of Tiki mixology with his first branded product, unearthing a long-lost gadget from the catacombs of mid-century bar culture: Beachbum Berry's Navy Grog Ice Cone Kit.
Special event recap
Miami Rum Renaissance Festival
Upstart spirits share spotlight with major players
It was a rum enthusiast's dream: Seven days tasting hundreds of rums and cocktails in sunny Miami, learning about the colorful history and culture that envelop every aspect of the industry.
Cocktails reach new heights of creativity
Fueled by the first Miami Cocktail Week, mixologists upped their game at the 2014 Miami Rum Renaissance Festival in April, presenting new and classic drinks with a modern flair.
Take 5
5 questions with ...
Ian Burrell, the global ambassador of rum
There's nobody better suited to represent rum than the globe-trotting Ian "Rum Ambassador" Burrell, a UK native of Jamaican descent who seems to have the fun and lively spirit running through his veins.
• See all the Miami Rum Festival coverage
Take 5
5 questions with ...
Jeff 'Beachbum' Berry, Tiki cocktail historian extraordinaire
We caught up with the author in his natural habitat (The Mai-Kai gardens) and got his take on time travel, his upcoming book, and his most loved (and loathed) drinks.
Book review
Professor Cocktail's Zombie Horde
Zombies regaining critical mass: Book features 86 deadly recipes
Zombie Horde takes the recipes from some of the world's best bartenders and mixologists from the Zombie's sordid 80-year history and packages them into an easy-read, easy-to-use resource. Our review features recipes, history, analysis, a "Zombie face-off" and more.
• Devotees keep Zombie alive
Retro culture
Walt Disney World
A journey back in time uncovers author's 'Disney side'
My first visit to the Magic Kingdom in Orlando was in 1972, but it wasn't until decades later that events conspired to make me a fan for life.
Retro Disney World
• Artists shine at 40th birthday party
• Disney World is still cool at 40
Art & culture
Enchanted Tiki Room 50th anniversary
Parties, merchandise celebrate 50 years of enchantment
Disney pulled out all the stops for the the iconic attraction's birthday, hosting special events and releasing a dizzying selection of special merchandise.
• Massive Shag volcano bowl released
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